You grew up on the farm, learned to drive a tractor as soon as you could manage the clutch, and spent more hours talking to the animals than you have to your wife. That farm, with all its weeds, stones, and mud holes, is more precious to you than a work of priceless art. You watch your crops come up with genuine pride, year after year, and harvest it knowing you can start all over again come spring. You go a little stir-crazy in the winter, waiting for the next growing season, but that’s part of your life, too. You wouldn’t give it up for an easy life in a city. Nope. You are the stubborn farmer.
The world needs farmers like you. You get hard knocks, low milk prices, ridiculously high costs for seed, and you still persevere. You get the flu, and you don’t have anyone to call to help, so you just go out there and work through it. You run out of money and your tractor breaks down, but you don’t let that stop you. There’s always some way to keep the farm going.
You know you’re not as young as you used to be, and once in a blue moon you think that you might like to sleep in instead of getting up before dawn. You laugh at your doctor when he says you need to slow down or rest your broken rib for a couple weeks. Does farming ever stop? Nope. So you don’t stop either.
But here’s the thing. Change does happen, whether you like it or not. Maybe you tell yourself that you’re going to die with your boots on. That might happen. But your boots aren’t going to pick up where you left off. You need to seriously think about the future of your farm. Who will take over when you’re gone? Who will look after your animals when more than the flu keeps you in bed? Take some time to consider the immense treasure you are leaving as your legacy. Who will benefit from it? Will you have a hand in how it gets passed down to the next stubborn farmer?
If you need help thinking through the legalities of how to ensure the best future for your farm and your family, then you need to contact us. We can help.
